Do you need an antivirus?

[souhrid]

Yes, even though advanced.. My computer is like my home.. My AV is like my Doors and Windows with Locks "basic protection", that can be compromised if something wanted in bad enough, then comes into play my pitbull "secondary defense BB or HIPS" that sees malicious actions and immediately attacks and tries to stop the threat, and if that fails, then my trusty 45 caliber "On-Demands" comes into play, that will finish off the intruder for sure..

It reminds me of game clash of clans, evertime you switch on the system (or connect to internet) the game starts with intruders trying to break your defence and attack the colony. An intermediate user like me always need a av for building up my defence.

 

[Ink]

I use an Antivirus, because it will protect my PC from threats a human simply cannot identify. Using an Antivirus in conjunction with other security apps or security features, will further prevent malicious damage.

Voted: "Yes ( because im a beginner/intermediate user and the AV helps to protect me )", because I do not rely on any AV completely.

 

[russ0408]

No I do not have antivirus running on my machine. I'm running Ubuntu 14.10. I have my firewall enabled, and I'm using Clam Tk as a virus scanner scheduled to scan every night. Ubuntu 14.10 has apparmor installed automatically upon install. Therefore I feel I'm adequately protected.

 

[ElectricSheep]

No I do not have antivirus running on my machine. I'm running Ubuntu 14.10. I have my firewall enabled, and I'm using Clam Tk as a virus scanner scheduled to scan every night. Ubuntu 14.10 has apparmor installed automatically upon install. Therefore I feel I'm adequately protected.

And if a nasty malware DOES breach your 'defences', what do you do then?
Spend hours running various scans attempting to eliminate it or do you completely reset your OS, losing all your current settings and various things that you've gotten comfortable with, which can also be time consuming.

I personally am bristling with defences but one simple mistake can let something slip through.

For example, I downloaded a freeware the other week, unchecked boxes as I went through the installation BUT I got caught out at some point during the installation and an adware program slipped past my defences - which was promptly terminated 5 minutes later by running MBAM.

Also, AV's DO catch things trying to slip past without you realising.
Better to be safe than sorry!

 

[donetao]

Hi! AV's are a must. As has been mentioned several times,the bad guys may still get through. The ultimate protection is getting into the habit of creating a back up image of your OS on a regular basis. The last time I checked, I had 14 back up images. I'm sure I could find one of those without malware. If you like resetting your PC to factory and reinstalling all your Apps and up dates, that's also a way to make sure you're malware free. Creating a back up image is so simple. I just don't understand why everyone doesn't create back up images.

 

[ElectricSheep]

And who likes resetting and re-installing everything, which can take hours - days even....?
I for one don't

 

[Azure]

An antivirus is like a seat belt. No matter how good of a driver you are, you should always wear one.

 

[Overkill]

I use an Antivirus, because it will protect my PC from threats a human simply cannot identify. Using an Antivirus in conjunction with other security apps or security features, will further prevent malicious damage.

Voted: "Yes ( because im a beginner/intermediate user and the AV helps to protect me )", because I do not rely on any AV completely.

This is my mentality as well

 

[Deleted member 21043]

Everyone needs a Antivirus or some level of protection sometimes. However, it's not to say that it's "impossible" to survive without it.

I know people who don't use a Antivirus and have never been infected. They view many new websites every day which are known to be safe and also unknown (could be a zero-day malicious URL for all he knows). He also downloads many new files on a regular basis. However, he does not use a Antivirus no matter how much I hint him to use one and suggest it; luckily he has not been infected, yet. That's not to say he won't get infected. Tomorrow could be his unlucky day.

Like I said, 'Everyone needs a Antivirus or some level of protection sometimes'. People can deny it and this could be debatable, however it's like the police calling backup in a situation to stop themselves from being outnumbered (because if they are, the chances of them being injured would be higher even with their training), people having gates and a secure front-door to help prevent break ins or CCTV/Security alarms to help identify break ins (in their house).

There are so many things which can be compared. Just remember that "Everyone needs a Antivirus or some level of protection sometimes".
Cheers.

 

[vivid]

A standalone antivirus implies cleaning capabilities in theory. The av industry is deceiving its users with the promise of detection above everything else. In reality, detection-based era is dead as noted by some security giants.

 

[Exterminator]

Its like wearing your seatbelt in your car.The one time you dont have it on something bad happens and everyone is saying "If only he wore his seatbelt" It might not be that you are a bad driver but you have to worry about everyone else on the road.
I am sure professional race car driver wears his or her seatbelt when they are in their personal car.
Many of us do our personal banking online,make purchases,transfer money,etc. I am sure I could get by with not using an AV/Security suite,but having used one for the last 18-20 years and not having an infection why on earth would I not continue to use one and or advise anyone not to use one. Everything everywhere is vulnerable this day in age and I personally sleep at lot better at night when I lock my doors before I go to bed.
So yes I rely on it

 

[stephentony]

I am running Eset SS with AppGuard and that's it. Although, I believe AppGuard configured properly, with a hardened browser, and no dangerous surfing habits and yes, I believe you can get by without a real-time AV. I just feel more secure having the real-time AV. Good question though!

 

[donetao]

I run MSE and MBAM Pro. WOT on every browser. WOT warns me with a red life savor and MBAM blocks these screen saver sites. Have you clicked on one of these?? Well good luck if you have.
How cool is that. I have never had a malicious infection!!
How cool is that??

Hi I could post hundreds of the above examples where WOT and MBAM work together to keep crap off my PC.
Our virus exchangers and testers do MT a great service, but they can not possible test all the threats that WOT and MBAM block for me.
MBAM has blocked IP's and has saved me a lot of grief. Do you need a AV program. Certainly you do , but you need extra layers of protection these days and the combination I have has severed me well over the years.
Great thread @Umbra Polaris A lot of good discussions here.
Thanks!!

 

[Deleted member 178]

Personally, i don't like Avs for many reasons:

1- Their realtime engine slowdown my system responsiveness.
2- Too many FPs ( some famous Avs even locked-down your PC or delete system files ...)
3- Constant needs for downloads & installation of signatures, annoying in slow internet area or data plan subscription
4- Signatures only delivered if a malware is widely spread and reported.(one well-made FUD RAT and you are done)
5- You need to scan the system


I know that some of those reasons are not major issues (or even futile or non-existent in some Avs) but i dont like having any of them

some members use the "castle/house" analogy. Sure the Avs is like a sentinel or watchdog , acting as 1st layer, i don't deny this fact , i used to have an AV before; but i will continue the analogy by adding this:

- what if the road leading to your castle is hidden and replaced by one leading to a cage or prison or even a fake castle?

Some of you can already see that i'm talking about honeypots, virtualization and containment system.

Anyway all your answers are very informative to me and clearly shows that the AV industry is not dead yet

Keep giving your opinion here.

thanks

 

[StriderHunterX]

I definitely need an AV.Why?

Peace of mind with surfing and installing software and my laptop has more than 1 user.Even though she has no admin rights,you can never be 2 careful.The added protection I have learned from reading here has not bogged down my system one bit....

 

[illumination]

Personally, i don't like Avs for many reasons:

1- Their realtime engine slowdown my system responsiveness.
2- Too many FPs ( some famous Avs even locked-down your PC or delete system files ...)
3- Constant needs for downloads & installation of signatures, annoying in slow internet area or data plan subscription
4- Signatures only delivered if a malware is widely spread and reported.(one well-made FUD RAT and you are done)
5- You need to scan the system


I know that some of those reasons are not major issues (or even futile or non-existent in some Avs) but i dont like having any of them

some members use the "castle/house" analogy. Sure the Avs is like a sentinel or watchdog , acting as 1st layer, i don't deny this fact , i used to have an AV before; but i will continue the analogy by adding this:

- what if the road leading to your castle is hidden and replaced by one leading to a cage or prison or even a fake castle?

Some of you can already see that i'm talking about honeypots, virtualization and containment system.

Anyway all your answers are very informative to me and clearly shows that the AV industry is not dead yet

Keep giving your opinion here.

thanks

Honey pots are not a novice/intermediate tool, even most that consider themselves advanced "as this term is used loosely as we all know", have trouble setting up and maintaining one or many.. Beyond that, they are not completely bullet proof, as with the other scenarios, if something/someone wants in bad enough, there are those that are talented enough to do so, and recognize the fake "system/network".

You have to ask yourself though, what are the chances a highly skilled hacker is going to try and break through Umbras defenses and honeypots... Probably very slim, that is unless you really are a corporation and are just hiding this from us..
As i explain in another post, i know bootkits exist, but have never seen one on a persons computer before..

For most average users, an AV is the front line, and now days they are learning it is not enough and needs to be backed up by other solutions. Now i know that trying to argue that Av's and their webfilters "the ones that have them", are a great frontline of defense, that stop a majority of malware from even entering the system, and or the Av on custom deep scan finding what did make it past, will be rebutted by those that believe webfilters and Av's are useless..

 

[Deleted member 178]

unfortunately with Symantec EP i have an AV installed , without my full consent lol (i need its "Rep system" that is tied to the AV module, but i limited the footprint on my system responsiveness by tweaking the setting for my needs).

 

[clyde]

I would never run my system without a av installed

 

[nissimezra]

it's all depending on my resources, if I have enough and for then yes.
if I'm on 500 mb of ram then hell not I'll have only the AV running and all other functionality are dead.
in general I can live with out it coz I don't use online banking and I have at least 3 backups one not active, one active, one cloud not always synced.
non of the answer above suite me.

 

[Nico@FMA]

Hmmm not trying to get people pissed off, but AV software in general are obsolete at best.
Traditional AV programs died like 5 years ago as they offered only a antivirus and some very basic additional options, as i said died.... in favor of specialised tools and internet security solutions or all in one packages.
The new generation of security programs that incorporate AV or Anti malware technologies are so much more well rounded then 5 years ago.
Now 5 years do not seem much but in the ICT world 5 years equals 50 years.
People do not need a AV program you can do perfectly without it as their effectiveness is plausible at best.
However internet security solutions and endpoint protection solutions are absolutely needed specially for the novice users.
More advanced users can obviously tweak their system in such way that no internet security can match that and even then IS programs are needed.
Industry wise things are a bit different so i will skip that.
For you as the home user you need a internet security application that is well rounded and mature. (KIS, NOD32, NIS, Sophos) or any of the more rounded names.

In the end of the day it might not even be your fault that you got infected or hacked, so one way or another even if you are einstein himself, you are going to need a internet security package that protects you when everything else including your own actions fail.
Think of bugs, exploits and other vulnerabilities so many issues that your OS has, and 80% of them far beyond any of our capability to fix.
Your IS package can in most cases.

Just saying.
Cheers